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Lady Wildcats win home season opener

By Christy SheetsSports Writer It was a real battle of the cats against the Maywood Tigers in Wallace on Friday, Sept. 4, and although both defenses were strong, the Lady Cats defeated the scrappy Tigers in straight sets Friday night (25-7, 25-7, 25-13). The Tigers were tough, but the Cats were ready to fight and their offense was outstanding. The entire team worked hard, and everyone seemed prepared for the new season. This year’s starting line up for the Wildcats include 5 foot 10 senior, Jena Aylward, 5 foot 11 senior, Katie West, 5 foot 8 junior, Shanice Harris, 5 foot 3 junior, Katelynn Hild, 5 foot 4 junior, Laura O’Brien, and 5 foot 7 junior, Whitney Smith. The Lady Cats started out strong, and never seemed to really relinquish control. The Wildcats set the pace early, and fought to maintain the lead. The ladies showed a real desire to win, with the Wildcats diving and hitting the floor to keep the ball in play. Every good play served to increase the momentum of the Cats, and it truly was a team effort. The starters gained enough of a lead in each set that all the varsity players saw court time. “The girls really played well tonight, said Coach Rohde. “We were very balanced on offense, and played with a lot of intensity. We also passed the ball well, which made our offense click. It was a total team effort.” Leading the Cats defensively Friday night were Shanice Harris with 10 kills, Katie West with five blocks and six kills, and Jena Aylward with two blocks and seven kills. Whitney Smith had eight kills, Katelynn Hild had one kill, and Brooke Hochstetler had one block. Laura O’Brien had 16 set assists, Hild had 11 assists, and Emily Hasenauer and West each had one assist. Offensively, O’Brien led the Cats scoring 13 points (two aces), followed closely by West who scored 12 points (one ace), and Harris who scored 10 points (one ace). Aylward scored nine points (two aces), Hild had five points, Smith had three points, Josi Hasenauer had two points (one ace), and Paige Kerchal scored one.Next Action The Lady Cats played at Grant on Tuesday, Sept. 8 in the Perkins County triangular. They’ll take part in another triangular on Sept. 15 in Hitchcock County.